Budapest had been gripped by panic ever since the Austrian army encircled the city. If the new government had not still harbored illusions about its ally, the Kingdom of Sardinia, many people would already have fled.
Of course, those who had not fled were preparing to do so. Budapest was no small city, and to prevent the enemy from fighting like a cornered dog, the Bohemian Legion strictly carried out the tactic of surrounding on three sides while leaving one side open.
It was easy enough for one or two people to slip away. So long as no large force left the city, the Austrian army would not easily notice.
Görgei, the Hungarian Republic's Minister of War, said with difficulty, "Mr. Kossuth, we have just received intelligence that those Croatian traitors will join up with the Austrians outside the city tomorrow. By then, the number of enemy troops besieging the city will rise to 150,000. Budapest will be impossible to hold!"
"General Görgei is right. Budapest simply cannot withstand the enemy's edge. This revolution has already failed. To recover our losses as much as possible and preserve Hungary, I propose peace talks with the Vienna government!" said Interior Minister Szemere.
With the military setbacks, Hungary's reactionary forces had also begun to rear their heads.
The bourgeois nobles led by Szemere and the military compromisers led by Görgei hoped to preserve their own interests through negotiations with the Austrian government.
For Kossuth, this was undoubtedly terrible news. Even before the Bohemian Legion had besieged the city, he had advocated launching an attack while the enemy had yet to gain a firm foothold, but the military had opposed him.
Now, the enemy outside the city was busy robbing the rich and dividing up the land. By freeing serfs and distributing land, the